ITU Media Centre

ITU announces the Technical Delegates for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics and Paralympics

11 January 2019

The International Triathlon Union is proud to announce that the Executive Board has named Melody Tan (MAS), Jorge Garcia (ESP) and Thanos Nikopoulos (GRE) as the Technical Delegates for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Mr. Nikopoulos will be as well the Technical Delegate in the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games.

“We are extremely proud of the team that will be delivering the triathlon events in Tokyo 2020”, said ITU President and IOC member, Marisol Casado. “With this selection, ITU is proving once more not only that we have a strong and committed team of officials and staff members, but also that we are trusting our female officials, as we also did in Rio 2016. I am absolutely sure that with these officials in charge of our events, the triathlon and paratriathlon events will shine more than ever in Tokyo”, she said.

“I am honored and privileged to be selected and work with two of our most experienced technical delegates on this project. The three of us are really looking forward to working as one team with the local organizing committee for making again triathlon and paratriathlon the highlight of the Games”, said Nikopoulos.

The three officials have a broad experience on triathlon events, having officiated before in Olympic Games, World Championships and other Major Events around the world. Mr. Nikopoulos is also the ITU Head of Operations.

The men’s Olympic triathlon will take place on 27 July 2020, with the women’s event being staged on the following day. The mixed relay will be staged on “Super Saturday”, 1 August, an action-packed day featuring 23 sports on which a number of medal events are scheduled to be held. The mixed relay, a dynamic event that sees non-stop action until the last second, promotes gender-balance, and fully addresses the IOC’s Olympic Agenda 2020 recommendations in this respect. The Paratriathlon races in Tokyo will take place on 29 and 30 of August.

Both the Olympic and Paralympic triathlon races will start and finish in Odaiba Marine Park in Tokyo Bay, an urban resort with white sandy beaches overlooked by Tokyo’s high-rise waterfront buildings which has been used as the venue for Japan’s National Triathlon Championships for more than 20 years. Triathlon swimming legs will take place in Odaiba Bay. The bike riding and running courses will wind their way in and around the park, and will incorporate a number of technical features.

The course for individual events will also pass through the West Promenade district of Odaiba, featuring waterfalls and greenery. With shopping complexes and other attractions in the area, the races will be sure to draw thousands of spectators along every stretch of the course catching Olympic and Paralympic action and cheering on the athletes in the heart of the city.

Triathletes will complete the 1.5km swim leg in two laps of Odaiba Marine Park, with the 40km bike section split into eight laps and the 10km run comprising four laps of 2.5km. The mixed relay—added to the Olympic programme for the first time—involves teams of two men and two women completing a short-course triathlon; each team member completes a 300m swim, a 7.4km bike ride and a 2km run before handing off to a teammate to take over. The Paratriathlon will consist of a 750m swim, a 20km bike ride and a 5km run.